


Given and Denied

by CirillaShepard



Series: Solipsism [9]
Category: Mass Effect - All Media Types, Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: Afterlife, F/M, Fluff, Love, Romance, happy endings, the afterlife
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-23
Updated: 2017-06-23
Packaged: 2018-11-18 03:02:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11282412
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CirillaShepard/pseuds/CirillaShepard
Summary: When a memory feels as real as life, it's as valid as life.





	Given and Denied

**Author's Note:**

> **DISCLAIMER**  
> I do not own anything from the Mass Effect game series (unfortunately) but BioWare does.  
> Damn them.  
> I’m just borrowing their characters for fun when my muse grabs me.  
> 
> 
> * * *
> 
>   
> This is the final part of the Solipsism series - thank you all for the lovely comments and reviews, I appreciate each and every one of them!

_“Fall like a leaf in the wind on the ocean of blue like your eyes in the twilight theatre...With symphonies playing in the world without a sound...We’re given and denied...”_  


* * *

  
  
“Siha...”  
  
A voice like silk flowing over my skin stirs me from my drowsy contemplation. I open my eyes a crack, shielding them from the beautiful blazing sun above me and scan the horizon. There is nobody is sight, just as it’s always been since I arrived here.  
  
I wriggle my bare toes in the sand and smile as I’m transported immediately to a memory from my childhood – a rare vacation with my family to the sea, running over the sand to the shoreline and shrieking gleefully as the freezing water touched my feet; the smell of the salty ocean mixed with the sweet scent of coconut sunscreen, the taste of vanilla ice cream and the gritty feel of sand in my mouth, building sandcastles and giggling maniacally as they’re flattened underfoot; collecting seashells (oh...... _Mordin_......) and looking for tiny crabs in the rock pools and being swung around in strong arms with the sun blurring overhead until I’m dizzy and breathless.  
  
“Siha...”  
  
A whisper, soft as a feather carries across the sea on a warm breeze.  
I prop myself up on my elbows and look around; squinting against the suns reflection on the water.  
  
There – walking towards me along the shoreline is a figure so familiar to me but so strange to see here where I’ve been alone for so long.  
  
A mirage, it must be.  
When a person is starved of water in the desert they imagine a beautiful oasis with lakes and waterfalls, palm trees for shade; heavy with fruits and nuts to keep them sustained.  
It makes sense then, that I would see him here now when I’m starved of his company and his touch.  
  
My eyes close and I smile at the memories of long nights, tangled limbs; warm skin and soft, drugging kisses.  
I’ve been doing that a lot lately – losing myself in memories, although I admit to wishing for the near-perfect clarity and recall that he possessed.  
  
I stand, brushing sun bleached sand from the backs of my legs and walk towards my beautiful mirage, watching the sunlight catch on his skin; his obsidian eyes regarding my every step and a smile playing at the corners of his lips.  
  
His hand reaches out and our fingers twine together, his cool skin feels silken against mine and our eyes meet – inky black to bright green – before he tugs me close to him and embraces me.  
My head tilts up and I brush my lips over his, relishing in the feeling and his taste and the hushed groan that escapes his mouth sends a shiver through me.  
  
We pull apart, skin flushed, eyes heavy-lidded and lips parted.  
He smiles, a full smile that makes him seem aeons younger and grabs me round the waist; fingers resting on the curve of my hip.  
  
Arms around each other we walk together at the edge of the ocean with warm, crystal-clear water lapping at our feet; stopping at a large flat-topped rock that we scramble onto.  
  
We sit in comfortable silence, listening to the gentle hushing of the waves.  
The sun makes its lazy descent, painting the cornflower blue sky with hues of burnt orange and deep pink; turning the sea at the horizon a dark midnight blue.  
  
An arm slips around me and I smile as I lean my head against his shoulder, breathing in his scent; that earthy, spicy scent that is just so uniquely _Thane_ and my eyes drift closed as the sky darkens at the edges and stars begin to pinprick through the twilight theatre of evening.  
  
After years of fighting, of friendships lost and found; of family, love and loss; battles won and lost, death and beginnings and the end of the Reaper threat; of things given and denied – I can breathe again.  
  
I am finally home.


End file.
